Ceiling



April 17, 1934. r H. E. SHUGART 1,954,954

CEILING Filed June 1, 19.51

Patented Apr. 17, 1934 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 1 Claim.

This invention relates to ceilings and methods of construction thereof, particularly ceilings constructed of prepared panels for sound deadening or other acoustical purposes.

5. An object of the invention is to provide a comparatively simple and inexpensive ceiling construction which may be advantageously used in building ceilings or in modifying ordinary ceilings for acoustical purposes.

10, Another object is to provide a time and labor saving and highly efiicacious method of constructing a ceiling of panels, particularly panels having sound deadening or other acoustical properties.

A further object is to provide a ceiling of the character described wherein the panels are secured and held in place in a particularly efiicient manner with a means which is entirely concealed by the panels and may be easily and quickly set up for use.

Yet another object of the invention is to provide a panelled ceiling wherein the lower faces of the panels are disposed below the plane of the means for securing the panels in place, and the opposed edges of the panels are disposed in abutting relation below the plane of the said securing means whereby to provide a finished appearance in the ceiling and properly insulate the sound transmitting portions of the ceiling without the aid of extraneous strips, or crack filling or covering members and the like.

With the foregoing objects in view, together with such other objects and advantages as may subsequently appear, the invention resides in the parts and in the combination, construction and arrangement of parts hereinafter described and claimed and illustrated by way of example in the accompanying drawing, in which:

Figure 1 is a sectional view of a ceiling constructed in accordance with this invention;

Figure 2 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view of the ceiling construction shown in Figure 1;

45 Figure 3 is a fragmentary perspective View of one of the panel supporting bars;

Figure 4 is a fragmentary perspective view of another of the panel supporting members;

Figure 5 is a side elevation of one of the panel 50 fastenings;

Figure 6 is an enlarged section taken on the plane of line 6--6 of Figure 5;

Figure 7 is a fragmentary sectional view of a modified form of ceiling construction within the 5 scope of this invention;

Figure 8 is a fragmentary perspective view of the ceiling construction.

With particular reference to the accompanying drawing wherein one embodiment of this invention is shown in detail, it is seen that in carrying out the invention a plurality of ceiling panel supporting bars A and B are secured in spaced parallel relation to one another, to a ceiling struc-- ture C, and ceiling panels D are then secured to and between said bars by fastening means E, in such manner that the lower faces thereof are below the plane of the bars, and the opposed edges of the panels abut one another beneath said bars and fastening means. With this arrangement the panel securing and supporting members are entirely concealed and covered by the panels and, therefore, the use of extraneous means or members for covering the panel supporting and fastening members or for filling cracks or spaces between the panels is unnecessary. The panels D may be formed of any suitable material, the in- 75 vention contemplating the use of preformed finished panels of stable character which are adapted to be assembled on the bars.

Where the panels are employed for sound deadening and acoustical purposes, it is important to insulate or coverthe bars and fastening members which have relatively greater sound transmitting and deflective properties than the panels. Consequently it is apparent that by constructing and arranging the panels, supporting bars and 5 fastening elements, so that said bars and elements will be fully covered and concealed by said panels, as aforesaid, the ceiling will be rendered sound proof and non-deflective in a particularly efiicacious manner.

The bars A and B may be fastened to the ceiling structure in various ways provided they are disposed in spaced parallel relation to one another as aforesaid. As here shown, they are secured by wire ties 11 to joists or beams 12 of the ceiling structure; the bars being provided with openings 13 adjacent their upper edges for reception of said wire ties.

The bars A are of angle form and define op- I posed edges of the ceiling, being laid against the opposite walls F, as shown in Figures 1 and 2, whereas the bars B are T-shaped and arranged between the bars A with their stem portions 14 extending downwardly. The vertical portion 15 of the bar A at one edge of the ceiling is extended downwardly to project into recesses 16 formed in one of the side faces of the panels D which are secured thereto, and the horizontal portion of said bar lies upon the upper sides of said panels.

The bars A at the other edge of the ceiling are arranged with their vertical portions extending upwardly so as to permit the margins of the panels D being closely fitted against the wall F on applying the last row of the panels as will be later described.

The bars B have their horizontal portions 17 engaged upon the upper sides of the two rows of panels secured to opposite sides of the vertical portions 14. These vertical portions lie in the recessses formed in theside faces of the panels.

Thus it is seen that the panels secured to bars A extend thereunder and abut the adjacent walls F and thereby conceal and insulate said bars. The panels which are secured to the bars B also act to cover and conceal the portions 14 of said bars, in that the opposed side edges or faces of said panels will abut one another beneath the plane of the lower edges of said portions. For decorative purposes the panels may be beveled as at 18 along the lower edges of the side faces thereof.

The fastening means E comprises spurs, projections or like fastenings carried by the bars A and B and arranged to penetrate the panels D at points above the aforesaid abutting side faces of the panels. As here shown, in Figures 5 and 6, the fastenings E are in the form of double ended nails comprising a shank 19 pointed at each end and formed intermediate its ends with a collar or shoulder 20, which are adapted to be extended through holes 21 of a row of such holes formed adjacent the lower edges of the bars. After having secured the bar A along the wall F at one edge of the ceiling in commencing the assemblage of the structure, a series of the fastening nails are driven into place, as shown in Figure 2, so as to penetrate the wall F and dispose projecting spurs from the outer face of the depending web of the bar A. In setting up the panels, first one of them is positioned between one of the bars .A and the next adjacent bar B in such manner that the side face of the panel adjacent the bar A will have the nails driven therein, and the opposite side face will abut said bar B. Next the operator inserts pointed nails through the openings in the lower portion of the bar B and drives said nails into said panel until the shoulders 20 formed between the ends of said nails engage the bar B and limit the movement of the nail, as shown in Figure 8. After securing the first panel, as aforesaid, another is then secured in the same manner and this operatic-11 is continued until the space between said bars A and B is filled. After this, the next space between the aforesaid bar B and the next adjacent bar B is filled with panels in the ill? same manner as aforesaid. It is noted that the nails extend from the bar B like the nails from the initially applied bar A whereby to permit of the panels being forced thereagainst to drive the nails into the panels when positioning the latter between the bars B. After having thus applied the panels up to the last row required to complete the ceiling, the other bar A is put in place as indicated at the right hand end of Figure 1, and depending inverted U-shaped wire fasteners 22 are secured to the horizontal web of the bar and passed through spaced openings 23 formed in the panel D to receive same; the ends of the Wires being twisted together to effect a support for the panel.

As shown in Figure 7, the panels 17 have sockets or channels 24 therein for reception of projections 25 carried by the bars 26 which support the panels. In all other respects this form of ceiling construction is the same as the first described form and serves the same purpose although it is especially suitable for cement or plaster ceiling, panelling or ceiling tile by reason of the preformed sockets 24.

It will be understood that while the use of nails having shoulders intermediate their ends is advantageous in that such shoulders limit the extent to which the nails may be driven, the in- 100 vention contemplates the use of headless pins or nails formed without such shoulders in which event the nails are driven through the bars only such distance as to effect engagement with the panel on the opposite side of the bar and leave a (15,5 protruding end of the nail such as to afford a connection with the panel applied to the other side of the bar.

While the invention is herein referred to as applied to ceilings, it is manifestly applicable for use in forming wall surfaces, partitions and the like, in which latter instance the panels and their supporting bars are assembled in either horizontal or vertical arrangement as will be readily understood, and accordingly I do not limit myself to the exact construction and arrangement shown but may employ such changes and modifications as come within the meaning and scope of the invention as defined in the accompanying claim.

I claim:

The combination with a panel supporting member of a series of panels having certain edges abutting one side of said member, double ended nails passed through said member and having certain ends penetrated into said panels and @5 their other ends protruded from said member, said nails being formed with shoulders intermediate their ends, adapted to abut said member, and a second series of panels having edges abutting the other side of said member and being Q29 supportingly engaged with and by said other ends of said fastenings projecting thereinto.

HAROLD E. SHUGAR'I'.

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